Meghalaya HC Upholds Bail in Honeymoon Murder, Slams Police for Flawed Arrest
The Meghalaya High Court on Monday upheld a trial court order granting bail to Sonam Raghuvanshi, the prime accused in the murder of her husband during their honeymoon in the northeastern state in 2025.
A single-judge bench of Justice W. Diengdoh dismissed the criminal petition filed by the state government, which sought cancellation of the bail granted by the trial court on April 27.
Justice Diengdoh held that the manner in which the grounds of arrest were prepared reflected a 'total non-application of judicious mind'.
'It is evident that such preparation was made without any application of mind... and nowhere is found any specific allegation or information as to what are the actual charges against her,' the high court observed.
'If this is the manner in which the intimation of the grounds of arrest is made, the same reflects a total non-application of judicious mind on the part of the arresting agency,' it said.
The court dismissed the state's petition, holding that there were no grounds to exercise its inherent powers to cancel the bail.
Sonam, a resident of Indore in Madhya Pradesh, was arrested in June last year in connection with the murder of her businessman husband, Raja Raghuvanshi. The couple had gone missing while vacationing in Meghalaya's Sohra area on May 23. Subsequently, Raja Raghuvanshi's body was found in a deep gorge on June 2.
Police have alleged that Sonam conspired with hired assailants to kill her husband for financial gains.
